Riverside Transcription Alternative for Recordings You Made Anywhere
Riverside transcribes what you record in Riverside, and prices its plans on recording hours. BrassTranscripts transcribes the file you already have, in any of 11 formats, with speaker labels, for $2.50 or $6.00 and no plan.
Riverside details on this page were checked on riverside.com and its help center on September 5, 2026.
The Three Questions People Ask About Riverside Transcription
Searches that land here are usually one of three practical questions. Straight answers, then where BrassTranscripts fits.
Is Riverside transcription free?
Riverside has a free web transcription tool for uploaded MP3, WAV, MP4, and MOV files, and its Free studio plan transcribes single-track recordings. Multi-track transcription, more recording hours, and the editor come with Pro ($29 a month, $24 annually) or Grow ($39, $34 annually). For a one-off, clean, single-speaker file, the free tool may be all you need. BrassTranscripts is not free; it charges $2.50 or $6.00 per file, and in return gives you speaker labels for up to six voices and four formats including JSON with word timestamps.
Does Riverside transcribe Polish?
Yes. Riverside's help center lists 100+ languages and dialects, and you set the language before transcribing. BrassTranscripts covers 99+ languages including Polish and detects the language automatically, which is the difference that matters when a recording switches between Polish and English or when you are not sure which regional variant was spoken. See the multilingual transcription page.
Does Riverside transcription support M4A?
Riverside's free tool accepts MP3, WAV, MP4, and MOV. An iPhone Voice Memo is M4A and needs converting first. BrassTranscripts takes M4A as-is, along with OPUS and OGG voice notes from WhatsApp, WebM from browser recorders, FLAC, AAC, MPEG, and the four Riverside accepts, up to 450 MB per file. The M4A guide covers the iPhone workflow end to end.
A Studio Plan Is Priced on Recording, Not Transcribing
Riverside's plans meter recording hours (5 a month on Pro, 15 on Grow) and bundle transcription in. That is the right deal if you record there. It is the wrong deal if what you have is a stack of interviews recorded on a phone, a Zoom export, or a client's files.
| Situation | BrassTranscripts | Riverside |
|---|---|---|
| Weekly podcast recorded in Riverside | $24 for four episodes, but you still need a recorder | Pro $29 covers recording and transcript |
| Three phone interviews a month, recorded on the phone | $18.00 | Free tool if MP3/WAV, or Pro $29 |
| One 3-hour board meeting a quarter | $6.00 per quarter | Pro $29 per month, or free tool with a converted file |
| 40 archived M4A interviews for a research project | $120–$240 (bulk tiers from $3.00) | Convert each file first; Pro plan hours meter recording, not uploads |
| Need JSON with word timestamps and speaker labels | Included with every file | Text and caption exports |
Bulk tiers for batches are on the pricing page; podcast-specific steps are on the podcast transcription page.
Using Riverside to Record and BrassTranscripts to Transcribe
Some producers keep Riverside for what it does best, local multi-track capture, and send the recordings elsewhere for text. It takes three steps:
- Download the track you want. The mixed track (MP3 or WAV) gives you the whole conversation; a participant track isolates one voice.
- Upload it to BrassTranscripts. Preview the first 30 words before paying. A 60-minute episode typically processes in 2–5 minutes (measured median 2.9 minutes per audio-hour, August–September 2026).
- Download TXT, SRT, VTT, and JSON. Speaker labels (Speaker A, B, C) are automatic on the mixed track; rename them with the AI prompt guide for show notes.
Transcribe the File You Already Have
M4A, MP3, MP4, WebM, and seven more formats. Upload, preview, pay $2.50 or $6.00 for that file. No account, no recording hours.
Start Transcribing →Frequently Asked Questions
Is Riverside transcription free?
Partly. Riverside offers a free web transcription tool for uploaded MP3, WAV, MP4, and MOV files, and its Free studio plan transcribes single-track recordings. Multi-track recordings, longer recording hours, and the editing features come with paid plans: Pro at $29 a month ($24 billed annually) for 5 recording hours a month, Grow at $39 ($34 annually) for 15 hours, as listed on riverside.com in September 2026. BrassTranscripts has no free tier and no plan; each file is $2.50 (up to 15 minutes) or $6.00 flat.
Does Riverside transcription support Polish and other languages?
Yes. Riverside's help center says it transcribes 100+ languages and dialects, including Polish, and you pick the language before transcribing. BrassTranscripts also covers 99+ languages, including Polish, and detects the language automatically so mixed-language recordings need no setting.
Does Riverside transcription support M4A files?
Riverside's free transcription tool lists MP3, WAV, MP4, and MOV as accepted formats, so an iPhone Voice Memo (M4A) has to be converted first. BrassTranscripts accepts M4A directly, along with MP3, WAV, FLAC, OGG, OPUS, WebM, MP4, MPEG, MOV, and AAC, up to 450 MB per file.
How is BrassTranscripts different from Riverside?
Riverside is a remote recording studio: its transcript is a by-product of a session recorded in Riverside, and the subscription is priced on recording hours, not transcription. BrassTranscripts only transcribes, from any source, with automatic speaker labels for up to six voices and four output formats (TXT, SRT, VTT, JSON), paid per file with no account.
Can I transcribe a Riverside recording on BrassTranscripts?
Yes. Download the mixed track or a participant track from Riverside as MP3, WAV, or MP4 and upload it. The mixed track gives you a speaker-labeled transcript of the whole conversation for $6.00; individual tracks are useful when you want one participant's words isolated.
When is Riverside the right choice?
Use Riverside when you are recording the conversation: it captures each participant locally in high quality, and the transcript, clips, and editor come with the session. Use BrassTranscripts when the recording already exists somewhere else, when the file format is not one Riverside's tool accepts, when you need JSON with word timestamps, or when you transcribe too rarely to keep a studio plan.